The story, how they told it, and how they translated it into a game was interesting. The intro will put you in the middle of a battle and give you first hand lessons about the game’s battle mechanics. The game will also introduce you to the game’s main antagonist, which was Khotun Khan. The small things you could do, like writing Haiku, or increasing your sword mastery by doing Bamboo Strikes in certain locations. You can also look for Inari shrines. These activities offer a good way to avoid advancing the story, to just unwind and appreciate all the things the game has to offer.

Perfect Skills

The variety of skills and stances involved kept me on my toes, which kept the game alive and the battles engaging. There are four stances: Stone, Water, Wind and Moon, different stances are weaknesses of particular soldier types. My favorite one to use was his bow and arrow and sniping down enemies from afar. The variety of armors and face masks available are very distracting, every time a new set is available for buying or looted, I spend at least 10 minutes trying it on and taking a few snapshots of it. Ronin Attire is my go-to set.

Battle Mechanics

Battle mechanics may be complicated at first, but the instructions are straightforward, and you’re going to get used to it eventually. My favorite way to kill an enemy is through assassination, whether creeping up from the bushes, jumping off the roof, or even stabbing them from the other side of a door, it’s very satisfying and a one-hit kill, unless it’s a boss of some kind. Also there’s an initiation of duel when you approach a group of thugs on the road, it’s very appealing and really sets the mood for a samurai duel, visually appealing and its sort of a one hit duel, so you have to be focused.

Plot

You will have several main objectives in this game. Drive away the Mongols and liberate the island of Tsushima from invaders. Reclaim your Clan’s honor and rescue your uncle. The road will be treacherous as you start your journey with a mediocre set of armor and sword, your current skill set then will not be as impressive—but the game is very forgiving and gives its players a huge learning curve. The final twist in the end was surprising yet somehow it feels like it was inevitable. As with the sun sets, a day dawns.

Conclusion

Overall, Ghost of Tsushima is visually-appealing. Battle mechanics looks complex at first but have a small learning curve. The music is immersive, combined with its breathtaking visuals, this game offers a unique experience for those who appreciate landscape sceneries, architecture, music and art. My only issue here are the side quests. At first, it felt like they’re somehow related to the story because you are liberating your people; yet, after a while, it gets repetitive. This is much like how I felt doing the side quests in Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey. Aside from that, I’d definitely recommend this game, specially for open-world, Japanese epic fans.